Grecian 1998
Member
XC still run a few double Voyagers on the SW - NE axis which seem to be spread out through the day. This is very useful if you're a leisure traveller like me - you can look at the formation on RTT (not guaranteed but pretty accurate) and plan your day accordingly.
However I have noticed that it isn't uncommon for a service one hour to be 9 coaches and the next 4 coaches e.g. on 3 February the 0954 southbound from Bristol was 9 coaches whereas the 1054 southbound was 4 coaches. As Exeter v Bristol Rovers was on that day, and the service was thinned out due to engineering works, I made sure to catch the earlier service.
Logically it would seem to make far more sense to try to run 8 and 5 than 9 and 4. Is there a particular reason this is done? I appreciate there may be multiple operational reasons involved in terms of where the sets started and where they need to end up, but I'd assume there would be some benefit in trying to run 8 and 5 where possible.
Last week I travelled on a 10 coach set on the 0727 Plymouth - Edinburgh between Bristol and Birmingham on 10 February. The last coach was locked out of service due to the length of the train. It was a FC coach, which obviously is less likely to suffer from overcrowding, but it did seem a bit odd. That said, I can't remember seeing any other 10 coach formations and I assume XC certainly try to avoid these given the hassle of locking coaches out of use.
However I have noticed that it isn't uncommon for a service one hour to be 9 coaches and the next 4 coaches e.g. on 3 February the 0954 southbound from Bristol was 9 coaches whereas the 1054 southbound was 4 coaches. As Exeter v Bristol Rovers was on that day, and the service was thinned out due to engineering works, I made sure to catch the earlier service.
Logically it would seem to make far more sense to try to run 8 and 5 than 9 and 4. Is there a particular reason this is done? I appreciate there may be multiple operational reasons involved in terms of where the sets started and where they need to end up, but I'd assume there would be some benefit in trying to run 8 and 5 where possible.
Last week I travelled on a 10 coach set on the 0727 Plymouth - Edinburgh between Bristol and Birmingham on 10 February. The last coach was locked out of service due to the length of the train. It was a FC coach, which obviously is less likely to suffer from overcrowding, but it did seem a bit odd. That said, I can't remember seeing any other 10 coach formations and I assume XC certainly try to avoid these given the hassle of locking coaches out of use.